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Things to Look Forward to in Spring Quarter

Posted on May 6, 2013

Crystal Ball: Kaleidoscope’s annual drag ball was after third week (a little earlier than normal). Itʼs an event intended to raise awareness and exercise willingness and ability to play with and subvert gender norms and roles. It manifests in the form of a campus-wide dance in which a large proportion of the K Community participates in drag.

Frelon: Thereʼs also a fall production, but the spring Frelon show is one of the key campus bonding weekends. This year there were 170 unique dancers in 25 dances (I was in TWO!), and the 399 seat theatre was sold out on both Friday and Saturday. The junior and senior dances end the two acts and are the biggest groups – super fun! I participated in the junior dance last year and the senior dance this year. Itʼs a really exciting event to be a part of, regardless of my lack of experience.

Nice weather! This actually just happened last weekend. Finally! From sitting on the quad to upper quad barbecues – Burger and Blues! – campfires at the fire circle, itʼs invigorating after winter quarter (and our dreary spring). My housemates and I have finally started utilizing our porch as well, poolside.

Completion of the Dining Services Bid: Found out yesterday that our catering will be provided by Creative Dining Services, a Michigan-based company thatʼs happy to work with the student body on increasing the presence of local food in the caf.

Juniors back on campus: Once again, an influx of new and old faces. Itʼs exciting to be able to share study abroad stories with another group and to get the sophomores excited about their own upcoming adventures.

Visit the Zoo programs: Working in the Admission Office, itʼs been super fun to help organize and facilitate the VTZ programs. I know it can be a little awkward at first (I remember it all too clearly), but itʼs a great way to get a feel for campus and I hope you had a good overnight!! #vtz2013 ftw!

SIP Symposiums: Each department has its own symposium (Diebold, Hightower, Hillberry, Van Leer, etc.) where seniors present their senior individualized projects – essentially their undergrad thesis papers. A lot of people did research last summer, wrote their SIPs in the fall, found out whether they received credit, and now are presenting for their peers, faculty, and the community at large.

StuComm Exec Board Election: Next yearʼs executive board is voted for during spring quarter. There has been a lot of criticism of StuComm this spring and weʼre working to better the Commission, so those running for exec are taking on a lot. This has made it a really competitive race, and in an effort to increase transparency for students, we have hosted several “Meet the Candidates” events with local root beer, smoothies, and next week there will be a debate! Student government, gettinʼ serious at K.

DoGL: This has been a K tradition since the 1970s, I believe. We find out the night before Day of Gracious Living that the next dayʼs classes will be canceled. The next morning, buses are waiting on campus to take people to South Haven, a cute town on Lake Michigan. Those with cars usually pile their friends in and pack snacks, frisbees, and their suits and also head to the beach. While it’’’’s important to stay on track academically during spring quarter, DoGL offers a refreshing break.

the last _____ of the year: All of the student organizations have exciting events each quarter, but this campus really saves up for spring term and lets loose really quickly. Like I mentioned, Frelon has other shows, but the spring show is the most impressive (and labor intensive) by far. Monkapult chooses its next leaders, the Black Student Organization puts on a show called CAT, etc. etc. Many of the events have a full house, and itʼs just generally a really fun time to be at K!

About Samantha Wolfeʼ13

Sam is a senior interdisciplinary Environmental Studies major with a minor in Chinese. She has taken Chinese since high school and always had an interest in going abroad to China, which she did while a junior at K. Her summer research in China was the basis for her Senior Individualized Project. Sam is also a tour guide, a second-time Peer Leader this year and new Parliamentarian for the Student Commission, and has also taken the role as the Social Media intern for the Office of Admission.